Southcoast Schools Sticking To School Calendar Despite Snow Days

It's been a snowy winter on the Southcoast. No one knows it better than Fairhaven's Superintendant of Schools Dr. Robert Baldwin. On top of blizzards and snow days, Dr. Baldwin has had to deal with Hurricane Sandy days, mold days at the Oxford (Wood) School, and a fire extinguisher clean up day at the high school. It's causing a challenge as parents are trying to plan summer vacations. As it stands now, if there are no more missed school days, Wood School students will be in classes until June 25th...teachers will be there until Wednesday, June 26th...just a stones throw from being in the classroom in July.

They're reaching even deeper into the school calendar in New Bedford, where students and teachers will be enjoying one another's company at least through Wednesday, June 26th. Acting Superintendant Mike Shea says there are no plans at this point to explore making any Saturday school days or using April vacation days as school days. That may change, he says, in the unlikely event that the school calendar is extended past Friday, June 28th.

"It's more of a fiscal problem than anything else. All of the bills and paychecks need to be paid before the new fiscal year on July 1st. We have two more snow days in the bank before we'd really have to start getting creative."  -

-Mike Shea

What about families that have planned summer vacations?  Shea says the school calendar has 5 "built in" snow days.  In other words, schools plan for 185 days.  Any vacations booked by students or staff before those days should be booked with this risk in mind.

The last day of school for Dartmouth Public Schools is June 27th.